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Bodhicharyāvatāra, composed in the 8th century A.D. by the Indian scholar Śāntideva, is one of the most celebrated texts of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Its Tibetan translation is included in the Tengyur. Āchārya Śāntideva himself was a bodhisattva and a realized tantric adept and his writings have a universal, timeless appeal. Many ancient scholars wrote Sanskrit commentaries on Bodhicharyāvatāra, prominent among them being Vibhutichandra, Krishnapāda, Kamalśila, Vairochan and Prajnākaramati. Besides its Tibetan translation by such masters as Sarvajnadeva, Dharmasŕibhadra and Sumatikirti, this great classic was also translated into Chinese, French, German, English and Italian languages. The present work is an English translation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s discourses on Bodhicharyāvatāra given to the Himalayan devotees from Lahaul, Spiti, Kinnaur and the Tibetan residents at Kullu-Manali, Himachal Pradesh in 1981. His Holiness himself has received this teaching from the great Himalayan master Khunu Lama Tenzin Gyaltsen of Kinnaur.